Screening Out Malware with Microsoft Edge – New York Times

In the latest version of Windows 10, open the Windows Defender Security Center in the Settings area to choose how the Edge browser should react to suspicious or malicious sites on the web.Credit
The New York Times

A. Microsoft Edge, the browser created for its Windows 10 operating system, has a tool called the Windows Defender SmartScreen designed to thwart malicious websites, apps, downloads and other files that target PCs. The SmartScreen is optional, and you can set the level of protection you wish to have in the Windows Defender Security Center â like outright blocking potentially intrusive software, or opting for a warning that a site may possibly have malicious intentions.

To get there in the latest version of Windows 10 (the Creators Update), go to the Start menu and open the Settings icon; you can also press the Windows and I keys on the keyboard to get there without the mouse. At the bottom of the Settings window, select Update & Security. On the next screen, choose Windows Defender and then Open Windows Defender Security Center.

In the Windows Defender Security Center window, select App & Browser Control. In the SmartScreen for Microsoft Edge section, make your selection: Block, Warn or Off. (The warning is typically the default setting.)

In addition to configuring protections for the Edge browser, you can also set up screening filters for apps and files downloaded from the web with Edge, or for apps downloaded through the online Windows Store. (Website screening involves checking the URL of a page you are visiting against a list of known malicious sites, so a link to Microsoftâs privacy policy is also displayed under each setting.)

Earlier versions of Windows have a similar SmartScreen filter for the Internet Explorer browser that warns against potentially malicious sites and files. To see its settings in Internet Explorer, go to the Tools menu and select Safety.

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